Dr. Francisco Cigarroa

Former UT System chancellor finds purpose in personal patient care

By Kathleen Petty

Illustration By Ryan Inzana

Francisco Cigarroa always intended to return to the operating room, but his father truly convinced him. “My father is 91 and still practices medicine and loves it,” says the former University of Texas system chancellor. “I don’t see a lot of administrators still going to work at the age of 91 with a smile. But dad wants to go to work. There’s something about that that was just magical to me and I said, ‘I can’t give this up.’ I just never did anything that impassioned me as much as medicine.”

Back to School

This fall marks the first in six years that the UT system has resumed classes without Cigarroa at the helm. After accomplishing what he’d planned—including establishing two medical schools and a new UT campus in South Texas—amid some tumultuous times, Cigarroa says he’s more than content to be back at the UT Health Science Center at San Antonio, where he was president before leaving to lead the system. In his first eight months back, he’s been involved with dozens of surgeries, taught medical students and residents and worked to spread the word that San Antonio is the place South Texas children should go when in need of a liver transplant, one of his specialties.

Patient Care

Even while chancellor, Cigarroa continued operating on patients two weekends a month, but once surgery was through, he’d have to hand the case off, which didn’t sit well with him. Now, as the director of pediatric transplant surgery at University Transplant Center, he’s involved with diagnosis, surgery and post-care. “This is a far more fulfilling experience in regards to taking care of patients,” he says. The ability to be involved with patients early is part of what drew Cigarroa to pediatric transplants in the first place. He’d initially pursued cardiac surgery but changed course when he found the field left little opportunity for the investigative skills needed during diagnosis. “I really enjoy that part—being a Sherlock Holmes,” he says. Along with treating children, Cigarroa also is an on-call transplant surgeon each month. That means in one week he could treat a 10-day old infant, a young adult and a senior citizen. “I see the full spectrum of patients,” he says.

Passing on Wisdom

When it comes to medical students, Cigarroa says he aims to provide a solid foundation in critical care. Even if they don’t pursue transplants as a specialty, Cigarroa wants their time in the Transplant Center to provide an example of what bedside manner should consist of in any field—a vital relational skill that he says can be lost in the age of iPads and electronic charts. “When you walk into a patient’s room, 100 percent of your attention should be on the patient,” he says. “It’s a privilege to be able to practice medicine again. The only thing better than that is not only to practice medicine, but also to be able to educate the next generation. And what better place to do that than in San Antonio?”